The Philosophy ofFreedom /
Spiritual Activity,

Rudolf Steiner(Written 1894; GA 4 / Bn 4 / CW 4)

Click to Visit the Verlag

This book, written in 1894, is a fundamental treatment of
Steiner's philosophical outlook. Together with
Truth and Science
and
The Riddles of Philosophy
it might be considered as one third of a philosophical trilogy.
The emphasis of the book is not on “freedom” as
ordinarily understood, but is on “freiheit” or what
might be termed freeness, or freehood. This freeness is a self-starting,
self-directing activity of a spiritual sort. Here, the term
“spiritual” is used in a sense not incompatible with
the use of the word in the tradition of the German idealistic
school of philosophy. It was originally published in German as,
Die Philosophie der Freiheit. Grundzuege einer modernen
Weltanschauung. Seelische Beobachtungsresultate nach
naturwissenschaftlicher Methode.

Chapter titles include:
Knowledge of Freedom
Conscious Human Action
The Fundamental Desire for Knowledge
Thinking in the Service of Knowledge
The World as Percept
The Act of Knowing
Human Individuality
Are There Limits to Knowledge?
The Reality of Freedom
The Factors of Life
The Idea of Freedom
Freedom-Philosophy and Monism
World Purpose and Life Purpose
(The Ordering of Man's Destiny)
Moral Imagination
(Darwinism and Morality)
The Value of Life
(Optimism and Pessimism)
Individuality and Genus
Ultimate Questions
The Consequences of Monism

The Philosophy of Freedom,
G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York and London,
1916, translated from the German edition of 1894 by Mr. and Mrs.
R. F. A. Hoernle

The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity,
G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York
and London, 1922, 382 pp., translated from the 2nd German edition
of 1918 by Prof. and Mrs. R. F. A. Hoernle with possible help from
Dr. Hermann Poppelbaum

The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity,
G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York
and London, 1932, 318 pp., translated from the German by Prof. and
Mrs. R. F. A. Hoernle with possible help from Dr. H. Poppelbaum

The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity,
Rudolf Steiner Press, London,
and Anthroposophic Press, New York, 1939, 260 pp., translated from
the German by Prof. and Mrs. R. F. A. Hoernle and Dr. H. Poppelbaum

The Philosophy of Spiritual Activity,
Rudolf Steiner Publications,
West Nyack, New York, 1963, 1980, 285 pp., translated from the 2nd
German edition of 1918 by Rita Stebbing. This edition is bound
together with
Truth and Science.

This is the first English translation and the only one sanctioned by
Rudolf Steiner himself. Joint translators
Prof. and Mrs. R. F. Alfred Hoernlé
were selected for their outstanding qualifications. First published in
1916, it is based on the original 1894 German
Die Philosophie der Freiheit
Other translations have been based on the 1918 revised German edition.
It includes inspiring passages about individualism that were removed
from the book in 1918 and are missing in later translations:
“We no longer believe that there is a norm to which we must all
strive to conform. Nothing is accepted as valid, unless it springs from
the roots of individuality. The saying ‘Each one of us must choose his
hero in whose footsteps he toils up to Olympus’ no longer holds for
us. If only we probe deep enough into the very heart of our being,
there dwells something noble, something worthy of development.“

Steiner's groundbreaking philosophical work on the nature of freedom and
thinking. This edition was published by Rudolf Steiner Press, London,
1964, 1970, 1972, 1979, with 230 pp.
This seventh English edition, was translated from the 12th German
edition of 1962, and with an Introduction by Michael Wilson.

This edition was published by Rudolf Steiner Publications, Inc.,
New York, 1963, with 411 pp. It is translated from the 2nd German
edition of 1918 by Rita Stebbing, and is bound together with
Truth and Knowledge.

This edition was published by Rudolf Steiner Publications,
London, 1949, with 220 pp.
It is the sixth edition, based on the original authorized Translation by
Prof. and Mrs. R. F. Alfred Hoernlé, revised and amended by
Hermann Poppelbaum, Phil.D.

This volume is a translation of
Die Philosophie der Freiheit,
published by the Anthroposophic Press, New York.
The German volume is number four in the Collected Edition of Rudolf
Steiner's works. It was translated by William Lindeman.
The cover Graphic Form is by Rudolf Steiner (originally as a study
for the book
Truth and Science).
Layout and lettering by Peter Stebbing.

Dr. Steiner's “Philosophy of Spiritual Activity” holds a
unique place in his life-work. It may justifiably be regarded as the
gateway to “Anthroposophy.” It is the modern thinking man's
pathway to complete certainty about his own spiritual being. ... Whoever
reads this little commentary will find himself well on the way to a grasp
of what Dr. Steiner has to say; and when he goes on to work at the
“Philosophy of Spiritual Activity” itself, he will find in
these pages continual stimulus and helpfulness.